Ohio Rescue Crews Search River for Veteran With PTSD

Warren County fire, water rescue possibly related as crews look for suspect
WKRC Cincinnatti
Brad Underwood
January 1, 2016

Authorities are looking for 27-year-old Aaron Berns as a suspect in the fire set to a home on Miranda Street. (Warren County Sheriff's Office)

According to family members of Berns, the 27-year-old has military experience and suffers from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

MORROW, Ohio (Brad Underwood) - The search for a 27-year-old Morrow man is on pause Saturday night as search crews wait for daylight to continue.

Multiple fire departments, the Warren County Sheriff's Office and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources spent Saturday combing the banks of The Little Miami River looking for Aaron Berns.

Berns is a person of interest in a house fire that is being ruled arson. When police and fire responded the house fire on Miranda Street they encountered Berns.

Lieutenant John Faine with the Warren County Sheriff's Office says Berns took off and dove head first into the river.
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Washington National Guard not called when ready for mudslide

10 minutes ago
Precious time wasted in critical first hours after slide, some say
Seattle Times
Brian M. Rosenthal
March 27, 2014

SEATTLE — As days continue to pass without any sign of life in the vast wreckage, some local politicians are increasingly second-guessing how officials responded in the critical first hours after the deadly Oso mudslide.

State Rep. Elizabeth Scott and Snohomish County Councilmember Ken Klein say officials should have more quickly recognized the magnitude of the disaster, asked for experienced assistance and allowed knowledgeable locals to help.

Instead, Scott and Klein say, officials wasted precious time trying to handle a difficult situation on their own.

“There was a real shortage of common sense in this whole mess,” Scott said. “It’s just ridiculous.”

The commander of the Washington National Guard said Wednesday that he offered his help to county emergency-management officials last Saturday and Sunday but was rebuffed until midday Monday. A spokeswoman for the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) said its help was requested around noon on Monday.

The National Guard has a 50-person search-and-extraction team with experience and specialized equipment. FEMA has a nationally recognized 65-person urban search-and-rescue team.
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